The SMU rowing team will travel to Omaha this weekend for the Midwest Intercollegiate Rowing Championship on April 26.
After finishing in second place to Tulsa by three points last season, the Mustangs hope that their two top-place finishes from the novice four and varsity eight races last season will carry them to the top this weekend.
Hosted by Creighton, the MIRC will showcase talent from Conference USA rival Tulsa, along with teams from Murray State, Drake, Creighton and Oklahoma City University. The Mustangs will send athletes to compete in the varsity eight, novice eight, second varsity eight, varsity four and novice four events.
In last year’s MIRC race, SMU’s novice four “A” and varsity eight teams won the gold. The Mustangs brought home four silver medals from the novice four “B” and “C” teams, as well as the varsity four “A” and “B” boats. SMU’s second varsity eight brought home the bronze after contributing to SMU’s 108 team score.
The championship will begin on Saturday at 8:45 a.m. with the varsity eight race, followed by the novice eight at 9. The second varsity eight boat will compete at 9:45 a.m., and the varsity four “A” team will start at 10:30.
The varsity four “B” boat will take to the water at 10:45 a.m., and varsity “C” will follow at 11. The novice four boats will finish the race with boat “B” racing at 11:30 a.m., followed by an 11:45 start from boat “A.”
In the team’s last race, the Mustangs pulled together to clinch fourth and fifth place victories in the Southern Intercollegiate Rowing Association regatta last Sunday.
The varsity four boat, made up of coxswain Emily Van Volkinburg, Danielle Nehf, Caitlin Ludwig, Nicolle Keogh and Lauren Hadaway, finished in first place. SMU defeated Clemson, the College of Charleston, Philadelphia, Tennessee’s club team and Nova SE.
SMU’s novice four crew, comprised of coxswain Ali Smith, Torre Kean, Sofya Davydova, Lindsay Graff and Rebekah James, finished in fourth place, defeating Ohio State and Kansas State to put them in seventh place in the B final. The Mustangs’ second varsity eight boat finished in fifth, to defeat Ohio State.
The rowing team’s next event will be on May 17th and 15th as part of the South-Central Regional Championships in Oak Ridge, Tenn.
